In geographical areas subject to cold winter climates, periods of near or below freezing weather can cause heavy frost, freezing rain, or snow to accumulate on the windshields and other windows of automobiles, trucks, and other vehicles. The frozen accumulation on the windshields obstructs the vision of the driver or operator of the vehicle and presents difficulties in cleaning. Most people have experienced the unpleasant task of standing outside in the bitter cold and laboriously scraping the frozen accumulation from the windshield and other windows of their car.
The summer periods also pose problems. The intensity of the summer sun can cause temperatures inside a parked vehicle to soar to extremely high temperatures. The seat and steering wheel can become too hot to touch. The exposure of the leather, plastics, rubber, wood, and other materials of the dashboard and passenger compartment to the intense heat and ultraviolet light from the sun can also cause the materials to fade, crack, and appear weathered.
Interior heating of the vehicle can very slowly melt some of the frozen accumulation, but usually not adequately to provide good visibility and usually time does not permit the driver or operator to wait several minutes for the heating to take effect. Leaving the engine running for the necessary time to defrost the windshield and windows before driving the vehicle is also wasteful of fuel. Similarly, running the air-conditioning of the vehicle, if it has air-conditioning, can slowly reduce the temperature within the passenger compartment, but usually time does not permit the driver to wait so long. Furthermore, air-conditioning can cool the interior of the car, but it cannot reverse the damage to the materials of the dashboard and passenger compartment caused by exposure to the sun.
One remedy for these types of problems, of course, is park the vehicle in a garage, however, as can be appreciated, this solution is expensive and not always available.
Generally speaking, the alternative way of protecting against frozen accumulations involves placing a sheet of paper, canvas, plastic, or other material over the outside of the windshield. However, unless somehow secured to the windshield, these materials are subject to being displaced by the wind or the weight of ice and snow, leaving the windshield unprotected. Furthermore, rain, sleet, or snow can easily penetrate the gaps between the edges of the sheet and the windshield to accumulate on the windshield underneath the sheet.
An alternative way of protecting against overheating and sunlight exposure has been to place an appropriately shaped shield inside the passenger compartment, behind the windshield and above the dash-board to at least partially block direct sunlight. However, the placement of these devices inside the vehicle creates a gap between the windshield and the devices, such that air is heated in the gap and then circulates around the perimeter of the shield and throughout the passenger compartment, thus creating a classic example of the "greenhouse" heating effect.
Several prior art references disclose using suction cups for attaching a protective cover to the exterior of a vehicle windshield, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,966,405 issued Oct. 30, 1992 to Shawn A. Tremaine et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 3,338,293 issued Aug. 16, 1965 to William R. Hohmann; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,184,264 issued May 18, 1965 to J. C. Ealey et al. Other prior art references disclose various devices that are attached to the interior of the vehicle windshield or window for providing shade against the sun, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,944,548 issued Jul. 31, 1990 to George E. Payne et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,893,68 issued Jan. 16, 1990 to Chieko Nomura; U.S. Pat. No. 4,823,859 issued Apr. 25, 1989 to Steve S. Park; U.S. Pat. No. 4,428,412 issued Jan. 31, 1984 to Adras I. Toro; U.S. Pat. No. 4,109,957 issued Aug. 29, 1978 to Joseph R. Polizzi et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,751,100 issued Aug. 7, 1973 to Robert A. Keys.
However, none of these references, separately or in combination, teach or suggest a protective cover that effectively seals the edges of the cover to the windshield or window to prevent frozen accumulation underneath the cover. Furthermore, none of the references, separately or in combination, teach or suggest a protective cover that provides an isolated chamber that minimizes the greenhouse effect and insulates the passenger compartment against the sun.